To increase the available interior space and to reduce the weight of a vehicle, many automotive manufacturers are turning towards alternative seat assemblies of their vehicles. One of these alternatives includes utilizing a seating surface made of woven fibers, which is stretched over and secured to a seat frame. The seating surface, also known as a direct suspension seating surface, supports an occupant and dampens the impact or vibration imparted through the vehicle to the occupant, without the use of traditional cloth covered foam cushions over a seat pan or springs.
The direct suspension seat configuration is lighter in weight and requires less interior volume than the traditional seat assembly, and can therefor increase the fuel economy, improve performance, and provide greater interior space without increasing the size of the vehicle. Although very promising, several issues, most notably comfort and to some extent design expectation, have arisen with direct suspension seating surfaces.
Generally, a two-dimensional shape is formed since the direct suspension seating surface is stretched over the seat frame. The two-dimensional shape is obviously different from so-called bucket seats, to which occupants of a vehicle have grown accustomed. Bucket seats have gained popularity over the years because the seat shape tends to support an occupant against the centrifugal forces exerted on the occupant during a turn. Until this time, direct suspension seating surfaces could not provide such support.
Therefore, a need exists for a seat assembly with the weight and dimensional advantages of the direct suspension seating surface, but with the cushioning and the support provided by more traditional seat configurations.